School/sen/failings

[Mumof3a]

Hi, first time posting and am looking for advice or general understanding from people who may have been going through similar things. Sorry if it's long winded!

Our son is 5, at mainstream school and he is becoming more disengaged in school every day. He is on a reduced timetable and has been since the week after he started in September due to his emotional/anxiety fuelled outbursts, now only attending a couple of hours a day. We have had many meetings with the Senco, Specialist teacher (LA), Head and Deputy who decided to reduce the hours he attends to help him reintegrate in class. This hasn't happened and in 13 weeks he has only been allowed to add 15 mins onto his time at school.
They are in no rush to extend his time there and are basing any new time to be added to his school day to how his behaviour has been using a traffic light system, with in my opinion unobtainable targets, which I have told them would be very difficult for him to get at this point with no additional support in place.
He is missing out on so much, academically and socially not being at school and I am doing everything I can to help him with learning opportunities, worksheets, reading, writing and real life learning in the afternoon's, but with the school in no rush to keep him longer, this might continue for the rest of the school year if I let it and I need to do something!
We are awaiting a EHC assessment decision, which we filled out as parents, was supposed to hear a decision today but nothing yet.
At school he has a very structured timetable for the two hours he is there and removed to do 1 to 1 time with a TA, sensory sessions when the other children in his class have free play and is allowed back into class when they have circle/carpet time to use the resources in the classrooms, basically segregating him as much as possible while there from other children. Is this a normal approach?

I really do believe he has ASD with a PDA profile, it fits him perfectly, but the school isn't convinced or even looking into this fact, although are using alot of their LA SEN resources on him, (well that's what they told me) and say they need to sort out his behaviour before they look at a underlying SEN need. I've told them his behaviour is a communication of his underlying SEN but I get shot down, told that he will be excluded/permanently excluded and told to just sign the new reduced timetable which we now do weekly. It's due to be done again tomorrow but after some advice from a SEN Advicer, I'm decided I'm not going to sign. What would you do? Am i right in not signing it? I don't want a bad feeling with school, (I have other children doing fine there) but something needs to be done so he has access to his right to a education!

Any advice welcome, I just don't know what to do for the best.

Part time timetables are illegal whether or not you agree to them. Your DS is being illegally excluded, refuse to pick him up unless the school provide you with official, formal exclusion paperwork.

If the LA are in breach of the EHCP timescales write to the Director of Children's Services threatening Judicial Review for failure to meet the EHC time limits.

If you think DS has ASD get a referral for assessment from the GP.

Some interventions delivered by qualified TAs outside of the classroom 1:1 are probably needed, not to isolate your DS but with the aim of developing his skills and coping strategies in order to cope within the classroom and in wider life. Other than the 1:1 withdrawal and traffic light system what other support are the school providing? What support and adjustments are they providing within the classroom?

Have the school gotten in an Educational Psychologist to assess DS?

Thank you.
I'm going to tell them at the meeting today I'm not signing the new reduced timetable so they have to have him all day, he has had a few exclusions over his time at school already, so it doesn't bother me as much as it used too.
They don't have any other classroom support apart from the class TA but do bring in a 1:1 for him when his class teacher isn't their for any reason which is good.

I rang regarding the EHCP assessment decision, but was told they is a backlog, but should hear within the next week.

They haven't requested the educational psychologist yet, I did ask why a while ago as it was on the next steps meeting plan in July last year, but they said they didn't have enough evidence it was a SEN need.

I took DS to the GP but they said it should be done through the school.

So despite the fact you have other children doing well there, the school have decided that your 5 yr olds issues are entirely behavioural and nothing to do with any potential SN? Bollocks.

I suggest you do the following.

Chase the EHCP application. Do this daily. Email them daily for updates and the minute any statutory timescale or requirement is missed, threaten them with judicial review or with the LGO.

If the EHCP assessment is refused, appeal it. They will probably back down and if they don't, you will win at tribunal.

Find your local parent carer support group on FB and join it. Ask for advice about who to contact and how things work locally.

Find out what the actual pathway for ASD assessment and diagnosis is in your NHS trust. Then, go back to the GP and tell them you want it followed!

Refuse to take him off school premises unless he is actually excluded. They will hate you for this and try to cajole/coerce you into doing it anyway, but stand your ground. They are only able to disguise the cracks in their provision because you are stepping in to paper over them! Put a stop to it. It might mean more formal exclusions but that's all useful evidence. If the school cant cope then it's not the right place for him anyway and the sooner you can prove that the better.

Good luck I've been where you are, in fact I'm back there again now with my 9 yr old, but there is now light at the end of the tunnel for us as it looks like a specialist independent school is going to be funded from next week... Hang in there!

Thank you. Yes my other children are middle/top of the class, well behaved, listen and work to the best of their ability.
I have discussed this with them numerous times but they brush it off.

Apologies, we are already at tribunal stage because the LA didn't ask the school to provide evidence initially and it went to panel without it and the school were waiting for the LA to ask for it. It was refused, so we appealed and the tribunal date was just before christmas. There was supposed to be a decision by now but as said previously there's a backlog, I'll call them again until i hear the result. The SEN advisor said its likely we will win, but I'm nervous we wont. Just keeping Fingers crossed.

Thanks for the ' Pep talk' I will read this again before the meeting for encouragement.

I am starting to think it isn't the right place for him but taking him out of school altogether (homeschooling had been suggested from other people we know) isn't either, so I've got to keep in the system until its sorted.

I'm happy to hear you have a place sorted.

Unless you want to home educate forever with no support at all, don't deregister him from school. They will wash their hands of you completely if you do.

If you feel you can't send him because they can't meet his needs - stop sending him and put in writing to everyone involved why you have stopped sending him. Tell them you can't risk his mental health by continuing to put him in a situation where his needs are not met. Make sure you copy in the director of children's services and your local MP (it's a fabulous motivator ). They don't like children being out of school so it usually kicks some arses into gear to find either more support or a better placement (this is what I had to do to force the issue).

You do have to keep in mind that schools are able to permanently exclude if a pupil is disruptive and aggressive to staff and other pupils. If this happens it would mean probably short-term placement at a PRU and then placement at another mainstream school without any additional support (or at least this is what happened with ds1).

As frustrating as it is, therefore, I would carry on agreeing to the reduced hours as the lesser of the two evils and put all my energies into chasing up the EHCP. Your argument has to be with the LEA (who can provide additional resources) rather than the school (who have probably exhausted their expertise and resources). I would also start looking around at other schools in your area which might meet your ds's needs better. Logistically, it might well be a nightmare to have children in different schools but if your ds's needs are met it will probably be beneficial for all the family.

Sorry, I'm a little confused as to where you are with the EHCP. Was the tribunal for refusal to assess or refusal to issue? Given DS hasn't seen an EP I guess refusal to assess? You usually hear their decision in a couple of weeks, but with Christmas and a backlog could be longer. Is it the LA you contacted or the tribunal service? If it was the LA you could contact the tribunal service.

Once you have heard. If your tribunal was refusal to assess, and you win, the LA have 2 weeks to inform you of the assessment. If your tribunal was refusal to issue they have 5 weeks to finalise an EHCP. If they don't stick to the timeframe threaten Judicial review. JR would be better than going to the LGO in this scenario.

Like QOFE says, don't deregister, it's much easier to get support when on roll. If DS can not cope get him signed off sick, the LA then have a statutory duty to provide education for those medically unwell for school.

Agree with One about looking at other schools.

Sorry for the confusion, The tribunal was for a refusal to assess from the LA.
We should hear anyday soon, I've been calling the Tribunal services who said it's taking up to 15 working days for the judges decision to be back.
I'm not going to deregister him, as understand no help will be offered.
I've just returned from the GP and asked them to start the ASD referral pathway, which she was happy to do. Rather than wait for the school to refer.

Thank you for all the advice given. I just wish everything wasn't so long winded and hard to access.

Brilliant outcome from the GP appointment. I would be surprised if the tribunal didn't go your way, so when you do hear make sure you are on the LAs case. And do make sure to request all appropriate assessments are carried out, along with EP you probably want SALT and OT assessments at least, and maybe CAMHS.

Thank you. The meeting with school was cancelled by them and rearranged for next week.
I got the tribunal decision and we won, the LA have to do the EHC assesment. The judges decision and write up was pretty bad on the school/LA side and said they couldn't see any reason why it was denied in the first place with the amount of evidence provided by ourselves its was obvious that a assessment was needed and that provision that had been put in place hasn't been working for a long time, which we obviously knew but was great to hear it from a judge!

So I'll inform school next week when we meet and take it from there.

Thank you 10brokengreenbottles, how do I request who the LA send to asses our child? Is there guidance forms?

Thanks.

Great result.

You now need to start hassling the LA to do a full assessment, as many try to get away with the minimum. It's the LA's duty to get educational psychology advice and, given the suspicions about ASD, they should be getting speech and language and occupational therapy reports.

Well done.

You can request an assessment from anyone you think is reasonable. OT, SALT and CAMHS would all come under that. It is best to ask for these assessments in writing, so you can prove you have made the request.

The LA should consult

"a. the child’s parent or the young person;
b. educational advice (usually from the head teacher or principal);
c. medical advice and information from a health care professional;
d. psychological advice and information from an educational psychologist;
e. advice and information in relation to social care;
f. advice and information from any other person the local authority thinks appropriate;
g. where the child or young person is in or beyond year 9, advice and information in relation to provision to assist the child or young person in preparation for adulthood and independent living; and
h. advice and information from any person the child’s parent or young person reasonably requests that the local authority seek advice from."

Just so you know those consulted with have to respond within 6 weeks (bar a couple of exceptions), and not having anyone available to assess or waiting lists is not an acceptable excuse not to comply with the time limit. If the LA can not stick to the time frame they should commission independent advice.

Also "not known to the service" is not an acceptable response either.

See IPSEA guidance here